1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a protective device for use in protecting various parts of the human body during physical activity, in particular during sporting activities, and more particularly pertains to a tubular, minimally compressive sleeve having at least one integrally formed impact absorbing portion. The impact-absorbing portion provides for effective dissipation of impact forces and thereby protects the body part underlying the sleeve from injury.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The general problem of providing protection from injury to various parts of the human body has been addressed in the prior art. In particular, various means and apparatus have been developed for protecting or guarding the shin, the ankle, the elbow, the knee, and other body parts. These apparatus find particular application in the field of sports where physical contact is a necessary outcome of participation in the sport. Padding and guards are employed to both minimize painful impacts and decrease the number of injuries such as bone splinters and fractures. One such guard is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,785,407 to Reeder which shows a thigh protective pad. Pads of the type disclosed in Reeder are intended to be worn underneath various items of clothing including socks, shirts, and pants and as such are generally free to shift position while in use.
Pads and guards find particular application in protecting the tibia, and in particular the anterior shin portion thereof, of soccer players. The most common injury to a soccer player is caused by other players attempting to kick the soccer ball and instead kicking the shin of another player. Guards positioned anteriorly of the shin serve to dissipate the impact of such kicks
Shin guards are commercially available as semi-rigid members which are worn under the sock of a player. These guards are generally not comfortable to wear as the material is not soft and abrades the skin of the leg. Furthermore, guards of this type have a tendency to slide down the leg to a position wherein the mobility of the ankle is limited.
A shin guard of a modified design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,306,315 to Castiglia. The device includes an elastic tubular member adapted to tightly surround the lower leg of a wearer in the vicinity of the shin. A substantially rigid member is tapered toward the lower end thereof and is adapted to be received in a retaining means in such manner that the rigid member is positioned between the elastic tubular member and the shin of the wearer. This device suffers from the disadvantage of holding onto the leg by compressing the lower leg of the wearer and thereby producing a tourniquet effect and restricting the flow of blood therethrough.
A device for protecting both the shin and ankle of a user is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,720 to Lampropoulos. The protector includes a shin protecting portion and an ankle protecting portion which may be flexibly connected one to the other. The shin protecting portion and ankle protecting portion are attached to the leg and ankle respectively by means of straps. The leg strap necessarily compresses the leg in order to hold the shin protecting portion in position.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a guard for use in protecting various body parts from injury that adheres to the portion of the body to be protected in such manner that a tourniquet effect is avoided. It would further be desirable to provide such a guard having at least one integrally formed impact absorbing portion in a tubular sleeve and thereby obviating the need for positioning pads under items of clothing and/or affixing a plurality of pads to body parts located proximal to one another.